Living in a third world country
Life in a third world country is usually worse than most would suggest, it becomes more deadly if you’re one of many who earn less than a dollar a day. I earn ninety dollars a month which is quite low when you consider how expensive everything is __ food, utilities; the list goes on.
But truth be told am one of the lucky ones to have even found work at all. Nigeria is a beautiful country; fertile lands, extensive mineral and material resources which are for the most part being squandered by the political elite; cabals who like nothing better than to keep the countrys’ economics and people under a tight leash.
It’s hard however to be ungrateful when I consider how many years I sweated to get a job at all. I teach twenty six impressionable children, whose age range is between six and eight years old.
The job has its challenges as everything on earth does. Trying to impart knowledge into children who’d rather play than work; you could come into conflict with their overprotective parents. Another negative is seeing children being emotional abused or neglected by the people supposed to see to their well being.
Surviving in Nigeria is like trying to navigate a mine field with only a pencil thin flashlight for company in the darkness of night. To some that might sound like a gross exaggeration but it happens to be the truth.
You’ve probably heard reports of terrorist attacks, but that isn’t what I am talking about here. What I am referring to is the unfavourable working and living conditions.
Bill Gates was in the country a few days ago. He said Nigeria is one of the most dangerous places for a woman to give birth. Many disagreed with him but I felt his words were a right assessment of what most Nigerians go through on a daily basis.
This brings to mind something that happened to a friend two weeks back. She went into labour. Her first mistake was registering for antenatal care at the town’s general hospital, which many describe it as a neutering/death centre.
Her experience was an alarming indicator of how deep corruption has eaten into the nation’s systems. The doctors have a system they employ. When women come to give birth, they’re referred to private hospitals in town citing lack of appropriate equipment as the cause. These private hospital owners carry out unwarranted caesarean operations on these women raking up huge medical bills in the process which when paid are shared between the private hospital owners and the doctors at the general hospital.
My family friend lost the baby; it went into distress early in the labour process. She almost lost her life too. A complaint was filed but the general hospital staff denied it saying she chose not to continue her treatment there and had insisted she be referred to a private hospital. That was how the whole thing was swept under the rug.
This is one of a million cases which are buried on a daily basis. A pastor of one of the most popular Christian assemblies said humorously that every family in Nigeria is like a nation on its own.
Why you might ask? Well the reason is every family finds themselves responsible for providing their own electricity (Because we get on average three hours electricity a day. The saddest part is they bring bogus bills every month which we are forced to pay for. Nigeria is the only country I know where we pay for services not rendered), water and security.
The life of a man working in a third world society as dangerous as what obtains in Nigeria is a trial. But it is a trial we have no choice but to face, pushing on to a future we hope will be brighter than what we see today.